A 100-year-old Navy veteran received special recognition from the state of New Jersey for his service during World War II.
Navy veteran Sidney Finkle, who served as a Navy Aviation Ordnanceman 3rd Class during World War II, recently received the New Jersey Distinguished Service Medal (NJDSM) from acting Deputy Commissioner for Veterans Affairs Walter Nall.
The outdoor ceremony took place at Brandywine Living at Pennington, where Finkle, a Trenton native, has been living for seven years with his wife, Jean, to whom he has been married for 72 years.
Jean’s first cousin read aloud from the framed recognition from Gov. Phil Murphy (D-NJ) before Nall pinned the medal onto Finkle’s coat and congratulated him with a firm handshake, NJ.com reported.
“Congratulations, Sid,” Nall said.
The attendees burst into applause and cheers.
The couple’s daughter, Grace Finkle, lives with her husband in North Carolina but she was able to attend the ceremony virtually. Grace described her father’s outgoing personality and how he is very welcoming to his fellow residents.
Lynn Lowe, a former neighbor of the Finkles, attended the ceremony in person.
“We come up here. We visit them,” Lowe said. “We bring them Easter goodies, Valentine’s Day gifts, just to remind them that we love them.”
After the reception, Sidney Finkle recalled some of the memories of his service — some painful — before saying he was thankful to receive the state honor.
“It’s been a lovely day,” he said.
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